U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., visited the WisPolitics.com luncheon at the Madison Club Thursday and spoke candidly about his first term in Congress and politcal issues including the federal budget, unemployment and free trade.
Pocan framed his opinions in what he called a “pragmatic” mindset.
“The safe bet is, you name a bill, and I’m going to tell you it’s probably not going to pass… that’s just the reality,” Pocan said.
However, Pocan was optimistic about his ability to work with other members of Congress, especially within the Wisconsin delegation. Pocan referenced his work with fellow congressman and budget committee member U.S. Rep. Reid Ribble, R-Wis., as an example of bipartisan cooperation.
“I can disagree with Reid Ribble, but I can also get something done with Reid Ribble.”
Discussing economic policy, Pocan expressed frustration with the lack of action in the House of Representatives.
“We’ve passed nothing out of the House to help the economy. Everything we do is austerity,” Pocan said, “You can’t continue to govern by austerity and have a different set of results than what we’ve seen in Europe and other places, much less here.”
Addressing foreign trade, Pocan said he is concerned about the effect these deals could have on the domestic economy. Programs like the Trans Pacific Partnership, “are not fair trade,” he said.
The Trans Pacific Partnership is an international effort to set trade rules among a dozen nations in the Pacific region, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
“We give away our autonomy to some foreign tribunal to govern and decide, and we [Congress] shouldn’t be able to do that,” Pocan said.
The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to reconvene Feb. 25.
